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Paella is a Spanish dish that is typically made with rice, saffron, and a mix of seafood and meats, and is cooked in a very large shallow pan over low heat for a long time (slow and low). To me, that translates to: a complicated undertaking that requires a special pan and a lot of patience, aka I'm not interested.

However, this recipe based on Simple Veganista's easy vegetable paella recipe is quite the opposite of all of those assumptions. It's a 30 minute meal, can be make in a regular ol' skillet, and is pretty fool proof!

In this recipe, we replace the seafood and meats with lots of gorgeous and colorful vegetables, including bell peppers, tomatoes, asparagus, artichokes, and peas. You could interchange those for whatever vegetables you prefer or have on hand, making this a pretty flexible recipe that you can adapt to any tastes. If you want to add some protein, you could mix in a can of cannelini beans, or chop up a few links of vegan sausage to throw in the pot.…

We had a version of this pizza when we were visiting friends for New Year's and I've been meaning to replicate it ever since because it was so easy and so delish! It only calls for six ingredients (most you probably have on hand). It's not a traditional pizza because it only takes a little bit of (dairy-free) cheese to act as a binder; it's not a main flavor ingredient. I wanted to let the squash, onion, and balsamic truly shine!

We whipped this up one night after working late because we wanted something healthy but quick and also comforting. This would be also great as a little flatbread appetizer if you were having people over, and it would be good as leftovers for lunch the next day! You're welcome.

I tried to make sushi for the first time and I was amazed. It was so easy!

I have a Japanese food store right near my office so I was able to easily pick up a bamboo mat and some nori sheets on my way home from work. If you don't have a Japanese food store near you, I'm sure you can find nori in the international aisle of your supermarket.

I watched a Youtube video for tips on rolling the nori, but honestly it was super intuitive and only took a few minutes to assemble. My first roll was actually my best! You place the nori on the bamboo mat, spread out the cooled sticky rice in an even layer, place your fillings in a line along the rice, and then roll it up. I'll never have supermarket sushi again, now that I know I can make it so easily at home!

If you haven't had banh mi before, it's a delicious Vietnamese sandwich on a baguette with lots of pickled vegetables, cilantro, and typically, pork. This vegan version uses grilled tofu as the main filling and vegan mayonnaise in a spicy chili mayo sauce.

It's so simple to make these glorious (and super packed!) sandwiches. You can pickle the vegetables and marinate the tofu ahead of time, and then grill up the tofu right before you want to assemble them. You can use lots of different filling combinations, but I wouldn't recommend skipping on the jalapenos or the cilantro. Those two ingredients really make it a true banh mi!

Falafel -- a vegetarian's dream. It's a delicious and pretty accessible meat-free (and vegan!) option. I can't believe it's taken me so long to try making it!

This recipe is very simple and easy - you use a food processor to mix the dough, then form it into little balls or disks, and then fry them lightly in oil on the stove. I decided to make a little sauce to go with them and serve it over couscous + mixed greens, but you certainly could garnish with whatever you'd like. Falafel pitas or wraps are always favorites of mine as well. Once you know how to make the disks, the sky's the limit!

I'm a little hesitant to say that hubs and I knocked back this entire tray of nachos just the two of us..... but who can blame us?! They were amazing and we were hungry! And look at that luscious cheese sauce, it's divine!

Who needs take-out when you can make delicious and healthy vegetable fried rice at home, complete with an egg substitute that makes it feel like it's real Chinese-restaurant-fried rice from a carton!?

This would be a great dish to make in bulk and keep to reheat for lunches all week. It has great sources of protein in the tofu (egg substitute) and the cashews, and you can use whatever frozen veggies you have on hand!

We made this on a Saturday night with some vegan egg rolls for a cozy movie night - we made our own take-out for a delicious, different, and fun weekend dinner!

Want to wake up your honey with a special breakfast in bed on Valentine's Day? Or, any day for that matter? This is the perfect treat for expressing your love and appreciation for someone; it's chocolate, it's impressive, and it's delicious.

I decided to use sliced strawberries and bananas, chopped walnuts, and maple syrup for our toppings, but you could use any toppings you wanted (a vegan chocolate hazelnut spread would be so good with these crepes, and so would coconut and powdered sugar). Play around with what you've got or you beloved's favorite chocolate-flavor combo.

The crepe flip takes a little bit of practice so don't be discouraged if your first (and/or second!) crepe doesn't turn out the most beautiful. The trick is to be patient and wait for the crepe to start to lift off from the pan by itself, and then loosen the rest of it with a spatula - don't rush it or it will tear! You'll get the hang of it in no time.

For some reason I associate chocolate with love and romance. Maybe because I'm such a chocolate-lover, and am always overjoyed to receive gifts of the chocolate-kind. Anyway, for this Valentine's Day I'm making some chocolate pudding for my puddin'.

Your SO will love this creamy, luscious dessert topped with crushed pistachios or fresh sliced strawberries. It's the perfect sharing dessert as well - you can take turns spoon feeding each other, and all that lovey-dovey stuff. ❤😍

And for anyone celebrating Valentine's Day with a Gal Pal Party or by having a self-care/self-love day, this pudding is a super simple and yummy treat that you can whip up in no time!

I have a huge sweet tooth, but most of the time I find fudge a bit too sweet even for my tastes. I don't often crave it, and haven't missed it that much since going vegan. But....this fudge adapted from Minimalist Baker has changed my mind! It's only sweetened with a touch of maple syrup and the peanut butter brings a slightly salty taste that balances the sweetness really well. (I mean, who doesn't love peanut butter desserts?)

It took me less than five minutes to make, plus an hour of freezing time. Each piece is really rich and filling so you only need a taste to be totally in love and totally satisfied. It's the perfect snack if you're looking to cut back on your sugar intake and want to feel fuller longer. I take one little square to eat in the afternoon at work. :)

You could double the recipe to make a full 8x8 square pan of fudge if you're feeding a group. This will be your favorite quick go-to snack in no time!